Study of the stability of the inner surface polymer coating of synthetic polyisoprene surgical gloves

Abstract

Gloves are commonly used to protect both patients and medical personnel from infectious organisms. A polymer coating is applied as a lubricant on the interior surface of the glove because synthetic medical gloves are difficult to don. White colour marks appear on the internal surface of the glove due to the destabilization of the polymer coating during manufacturing resulting in loss of product quality. To avoid this issue, destabilized coating needs to be removed frequently from the tank during the continuous manufacturing process. The stability of the polymers was observed with varying surfactant content. Polyethylene wax dispersion tends to destabilize the solutions when there is low surfactant content in the mixture. The effect of the polymers on the stability of the coating was observed with 0.1 moldm-3 Ca(NO3)2. The coating consists of polyethylene wax dispersion and modified melamine resin, which destabilize instantly. The three polymers polyethylene wax dispersion, modified melamine resin and polyurethane need to be combined in the coating solution to maintain stability over time. The coating formulation, white polyethylene wax dispersion, was used as an anti-blocking agent to reduce the frictional properties of gloves, which caused white colour marks on the inner surface when destabilized. The existing formulation was modified to reduce polyethylene wax dispersion. Control gloves were prepared by applying the existing formulation. Sample gloves were made by applying an 80% polyethylene wax dispersion reduced formulation. Friction, physical properties, total water extractables (TWE)% and Ca(NO3)2% of samples were assessed compared to the control. The friction values of samples indicated no significant difference against the control. The average physical properties for aged and unaged samples were within specifications. The TWE% was 0.72, and Ca(NO3)2% was 0.27 of the sample, which is acceptable. The modified coating films were characterized by FTIR analysis. Future studies are necessary to conduct a shelf-life study of the modified formulation.